Metal specimen holder



Oct. 13, 1959 A. L. MILLER 2,908,118

METAL SPECIMEN HOLDER Filed Nov. 10, 1955 v IN VEN TOR. 9877/4/19 1.. a: 1?

BY I

United States Patent lVIETAL SPECIMEN HOLDER Arthur L. Miller, Anchorage, Alaska, assignor to the United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Air Force Application November '10, 1955, Serial No. 546,294

5 Claims. c1. 51-435 (Granted under Title 35, US. Code (U52), sec. 266) The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the United States Government for governmental purposes without payment to me of any royalty thereon.

This invention relates to a metal specimen holder, and more particularly to a metal specimen holder employed for holding a specimen firmly to permit even polishing by a rotary polishing wheel or the like.

Metal strips or specimens used for testing lubricants and various other liquid materials in laboratories require consistent surface polishing to provide a high degree of accuracy necessary in the performance of the tests and thus reduce considerably the length of time in testing such materials.

Heretofore, the operation of polishing such strips or specimens has been performed by the operator holding the metal specimen with his fingers against the rotary polishing wheel, which operation required a considerable length of time and very often resulted in an uneven polish.

It is, therefore, the purpose of the present invention to provide an apparatus wherein the metal strips or specimens are held firmly so as to be polished evenly, and wherein the length of time of the polishing operation is considerably reduced to two or threefold. Furthermore, a holder apparatus according to the present invention is very easily constructed, light in weight, inexpensive and very easily handled.

According to the present invention, a portable metal specimen holder is especially constructed of a support member having an opening, an apertured member extending through the opening of the support member, and vacuum means in communication with the apertured member so that a metal specimen may be held firmly on the apertured member by diflierential pressure while being in contact with the rotary polishing wheel or the like.

:These and other features of the present invention are described in detail below in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the metal specimen holder arranged in accordance with the present invention; and- Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view taken along the line 22 in Fig. 1.

Referring now in detail to the drawing, the embodiment of the metal specimen holder of the present invention illustrated in Fig. 1 is indicated generally by the reference numeral and, as shown, comprises a portable rigid support member 12, preferably of wood for lightness, and which is shaped as a paddle, the narrow portion of which serves as a handle, as indicated at 14, so as to be easily held by the operator during the polishing operation. It should be understood, however, that the particular shape of the support member 12 shown in the drawing is merely illustrative and any other shape may be employed without departing from the scope of the present invention.

The support member 12 is further provided with an opening 16 in the wide portion as indicated at 18, through 2,908,118 Patented Oct- 13, 1959 which opening 16 a member 20 of resilient material may extend as shown in Fig. 2. p

The member 20 being formed with a taper is adapted to fit snugly through the opening 16, but may be easily pulled from the opening 16 by a slight force due to the resiliency of its material. One end of the member 20 having a greater diameter than the opening 16 is adapted to project from the side of the member .12 so, that the substantially flat surface of member 20 is disposed in spaced parallel relation to the support member 12, on which end flat surface a metal specimen 22 may be placed to be polished. The member 20 is further provided with an aperture 24 extending along the full length thereof, which aperture 24 is in communication with a vacuum line or means as by a flexible connection 26.

It is apparent, therefore, that a specimen 22 placed on the free end of the resilient member 20 will be held firmly in place for polishing by the diflerential pressure acting through aperture 24. Also, the member20 being of resilient material, such as rubber, will offer additional retaining force to the specimen 22 due to the frictional force between the resilient member 20 and the metal specimen 22.

The present invention has been described in detail above for the purpose of illustration only and is not intended to be limited by this description or otherwise except as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A metal specimen holder comprising a support member having an opening, an apertured resilient member having a substantially free end flat surface and extending through said opening, said apertured member fitting snugly in said opening, and vacuum means in communication with said apertured member for retaining a metal specimen placed on the free end flat surface of said apertured member for polishing.

2. A metal specimen holder comprising a portable rigid support member having an opening, an apertured member of resilient material having a substantially free end flat surface and extending through said opening, said apertured member fitting snugly in said opening, and vacuum means in communication with said apertured member for retaining a metal specimen placed on the free end flat surface of said apertured member for polishing.

3. A metal specimen holder comprising a rigid support member having an opening, a member of resilient material extending through said opening of said support member and fitting snugly therein, said resilient member having a substantially free end flat surface, said resilient member having an aperture extending therethrough, and a flexible connection connected to said resilient member and to a vacuum line to provide suction for retaining a metal specimen placed on the free end flat surface of said resilient member for polishing.

4. A metal specimen holder comprising a portable rigid support member, a resilient tapered member extending through an opening in said support member and fitting snugly therein, said resilient member having a substantially free end flat surface, said resilient member having an aperture extending therethrough in communication with a vacuum line for retaining a metal specimen on the free end flat surface of said resilient member.

5. A metal specimen holder comprising a rigid support member having a substantially flat surface, a centrally apertured member of resilient material extending through an opening in said rigid support member and detachably fixed thereto, said apertured resilient memher having a substantially free end flat supporting surface disposed in spaced parallel relation'to and projecting from said rigid support member, and vacuum supply means in communication with said apertured resilient 3 memberifor retaining a metal specimen placed on said substantially flat surface of said apertured resilient member for polishing.

References Citd in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS C roskey'etal; Jan. 12, 1897 Staunton Mar; 2, 1915 Slocombe July 12, 1921 Grover Jan. 23, 1945 Richardson July 6, 1948 Boutell Sept. 7, 1954 Brewster Jan. 10, 1956 FOREIGN PATENTS France Mar. 4, 1950 L ru rm v.21. 

